Who Wrote the Books of Daniel

 Traditional religious views and many scholars attribute the authorship of the Book of Daniel to the Hebrew prophet Daniel himself, who lived in the 6th century B.C. However, modern critical scholars often date the book to the 2nd century B.C., suggesting it was written anonymously as an encouragement to persecuted Jews. [1, 2, 3, 4]

A closer look at the traditional and modern perspectives reveals the nuances behind this debate:

• The Traditional View (6th Century B.C.): Believes that Daniel, an exiled Jewish nobleman living in Babylon, wrote the visions and narratives himself. This view is supported by the fact that the second half of the book (chapters 7–12) is written in the first person. It is also the perspective generally maintained within traditional Jewish and Christian faiths, with historical references made by Jesus in the New Testament.
• The Critical/Scholarly View (2nd Century B.C.): Suggests the text was compiled and finalized by multiple anonymous authors around 164 B.C. during the time of the Maccabean Revolt against Antiochus IV Epiphanes. Scholars favoring this view point to the book's specific historical details regarding the Greek empire and the use of both Hebrew and Aramaic as evidence of a later compilation. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6]

For a deeper dive into the historical, theological, and literary arguments surrounding who penned the text, you can explore the insights on GotQuestions.org, read Biola University's Good Book Blog, or learn more through the Old Testament Seminary Teacher Manual. [1]